


The Pursuit of Happiness

by wanttoflyhigh



Category: Tales of Vesperia
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Drama, Fairy Tale Elements, Fantasy, Fluff, M/M, Romantic Friendship, Social Awkardness, Workplace
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-23
Updated: 2015-08-23
Packaged: 2018-04-16 20:27:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4639080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wanttoflyhigh/pseuds/wanttoflyhigh
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A man content with his surroundings finds that things rapidly change when another enters into his world, coloring it moreso than anything else has. How will it go?</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Pursuit of Happiness

**Author's Note:**

> Something I wrote quickly while waiting for an interview.

To Obtain True Happiness  
  
  
In the usual modern time, there was a man with long, pristine white colored hair and red eyes that could strike into the soul of many. He lived out his daily life, mostly trucking along, and finding himself working mainly at a bookstore of some kind. There, it was rather peaceful and something that he could find himself on his own after his parents peacefully passed away. It was also something that he could easily find that he would do without being bothered much due to the fact that it was also usually quiet during his hours (and yet those hours were not ones many desired). This meant that there were few co-workers and fewer customers to bother him much with.  
  
Another thing this man liked about this store was that it was generally lax in terms of managerial interference and dresscodes – as long as one didn't look shoddy when they came into work they had no issues with it. So, the man oft found himself with his hair pinned up, wearing a grass-green long jacket of some sort with a red sweater underneath and same color green pants. He also adorned himself glasses for his issues with sight, of course. Then, his sandals...  
  
He dressed basically how he wanted and no one said a word, and despite his own lack of wanting to speak with other people even if it required him of his job, he did it. He was polite enough that it didn't matter much if he didn't smile (also thanks to no threat from the management to step it up with a smile).  
  
With all of this said, this is how he normally passed his life, and it was all mostly normal, discounting a small issue he had which won't be revisited until a certain man walked in through those glass doors one day. His attention was caught from the small bells ringing first, and then what followed is the simple glance at the customer who he hasn't seen within these walls yet. The man he saw had long black hair, with purple irises, and had a gait in his step to suggest that he was rather someone who lived his days how one wanted to, laid-back and care-free.  
  
The man who worked at this store, named Duke, found that half of the time his time was spent observing customers who came within, and the rest of the time was spent reading books in his spare time. The former of those activities done if... he thought there was a reason to, and it could probably considered rude, but he really didn't have anything else better to do with his time if he managed to read most of the books here or happened to forgot his own. There was also the option of staring into space, but that wasn't conductive in a work area – at the least if he was focusing his attention on something he was alert somewhere.  
  
The man seemed to notice that Duke was staring after some time and flashed him a smile of sorts, before a thumbs up. It was so strange, that instead of looking away, Duke stared a little more, in perhaps a fit of curiosity, and then when the man approached him, he heard him say, “Hey.”  
  
At that moment, Duke didn't understand why his hands became clammy, why it had become suddenly very hard to say anything (moreso than it was usually). He tried very hard to say something, but nothing came forth, and the black-haired man just asked, “I'm looking for this particular kind of book. It's called the Water Margin, or something. I know this may be a bit obscure and I'd have a better chance looking online, but...”  
  
Duke quickly rose to his feet, without a single word, and went instead to check out if there was the book that the other wanted here. He didn't recall seeing it and admittedly he didn't think it was present, but...  
  
He could always try to see if it was and he might have missed that detail after all.  
  
The red-eyed man scanned the whole walls and double-checked his computer, but as a half-hour passed, to no avail. So instead, he looked up places online, and procured forth a list of possible places that could contain the book (even if the words 'in stock' were said online it wasn't an absolute fact after all).  
  
The man said, “Thanks. Had a feeling I wouldn't find it but hey, I had to try. See you later.”  
  
Duke wanted to ask, _Might I know your name?_ , _Your name... what is it?_ , or _Who are you?_ But he figured that the man wasn't returning and it didn't make sense. Besides, he knew some people thought it was creepy, so he stared as the man left the bookstore, and when he was finally gone, Duke almost released a sigh, not knowing where these thoughts or feelings were coming from.  
  
In the weeks that had come and passed, Duke found that the man returned a few more times, and that his interactions with him were apparently... noticed by his other co-workers, including his manager. He wondered why it was they began to alert him of the other man's presence, and had a feeling he was being watched when the other man was speaking to him. The last bit being so because Duke had never even had a chance to say a word to the dark-haired man.  
  
Duke figured he should've known something was up if he heard Raven, another co-worker of his, discuss with a woman with dark purple hair, “Huh, you seen that guy lately, Judith? What was his name again?”  
  
The woman than said, “His name is Yuri Lowell, I believe. He's been coming around here for the past month or so ever since he moved in nearby.”  
  
Raven 'hmm'd' and then said, “Sounds like ya know him well enough already. Gettin' yer poor moves on the poor kid already instead of lil' ol' me?”  
  
Judith smiled sweetly and said, “If you had a chance, I would let you know.”  
  
The man faked being burned and said, “Ooh, that stings! My poor heart can't take no more!”  
  
Duke rolled his eyes but said nothing, feeling himself getting impatient for some reasons (he was used to antics by now but he felt like they hadn't said enough about that man). Judith then said, “I think he might be coming in right now.”  
  
At that moment, the albino whipped his head over towards the door, and saw that no one was there. His face started to burn a brilliant light red at the thought that maybe someone might have saw how excited he was at the prospect, and he had to walk quickly out of there.  
  
In the next moment, Duke found himself standing in the recreation work room, but not as his usual self... instead as a small, white duck. He hated whenever this happens... this sort of thing always happened whenever he got flustered or embarrassed. Alexei came in and shook his head, before getting a bit of warm water to sprinkle over Duke's head, which reverted him back to his normal self, with his clothes, thankfully.  
  
Duke re-emerged from the recreational room like nothing odd had happened, and knew he must have been looked at strangely at least once. He took his seat at the front desk, however.  
  
Then he heard a voice say, “I heard...he stills requires help moving his things, though. He's got some kind of important business job and hasn't gotten to it yet.”  
  
Duke looked over to see another speaking, it was a woman with pink hair, and green irises. She was the owner and manager of this store.  
  
Before he realized it, he almost had stood to his feet, ready to say something, but not sure how to say it. So instead he just let the idea pass, wondering what he was doing, thinking of such a thing.  
  
Following that, the man hadn't shown up until the last day of the week, and Duke had found himself slowly making his way towards him, until he noticed that the man had pulled in a sort of arms-locked other male with short blond hair and blue irises. This made Duke stop and hope he wasn't interrupting something, quickly turning on his feet, but he heard Yuri say, “Hey, that's the guy. Duke!”  
  
“Yuri , don't be rude.”  
  
Duke wondered in a moment of incredulity who gave out his name so carelessly. Regardless, he does stop in his own walking, and find that he's turning on his feet once again to face the man with his... company. He quietly approached them and Yuri said, “Don't worry, I don't need your help finding anything this time, but this time I was hoping to catch you here because you've always been willing to help me out. So, I'm having a party at my place, and thought, why the hell not? You could come over!”  
  
The black-haired man handed Duke a fancy looking envelope of some kind, and the white-haired man felt strange, but also conflicted. He doesn't do very well at busy social gatherings, but he couldn't decline. This was his chance to--  
  
He wonders at the thought. His chance to... what, exactly? Especially when he's eyeing how Yuri's got his arms locked carefree still with his friend? Life-long companion? Partner?  
  
What is he thinking? Why is he bothered?  
  
Duke frowns, and the blond says, “This is why you don't randomly invite strangers to your place, Yuri.”  
  
Then said blond gives Duke an apologetic smile and replies, “I'm sorry about him, he's just... like this sometimes. That said, you don't have to come if you don't want to.”  
  
Duke nods his head slowly, and Yuri looks slightly embarrassed, with his cheeks faintly glowing, but the white-haired man doesn't know why. It didn't look like he was the type to care about others opinions.  
  
Then Yuri says fairly easily, “Even though Flynn's a square--”  
  
The blond, named Flynn interjects, “--Hey!--”  
  
And then Yuri finishes with a relaxed expression, “-- he's right. You don't have to come if you don't want to. I didn't mean to make it seem like something else.”  
  
Duke just nods again, before Yuri replies, “Until later, bye.”  
  
Later on, when Duke gets to his quiet home, he opens up his envelope, and looks at a few things on it.  
  
_RSVP_  
_Yuri Lowell's Move-In Party_  
_1111 Azriel Street_  
_11/11/2015_  
_5:55 PM_  
_P.S. Don't be afraid to say hi._  
  
The man smiles to himself a bit, even if he doesn't know why, and holds the letter close to his chest as he curls up as well as falls asleep.  
  
The next morning, what Duke didn't expect to find was a car accident in front of his home, and peered out his window to make sure that everything was okay. It was fine, but it meant he couldn't drive to work, and had to take an alternate route, since the police insisted on blocking off the whole road as well as making sure no one went anywhere much around the accident site. He understood why on some level, but he didn't quite understand how much they really needed to seal off investigation-wise.  
  
The white-haired man took a walk, and it was blistering outside, even more than it usually was, making it rather difficult. It had even forced him to wear a light red short-sleeved shirt, with a light pink skirt, and red shoes.  
  
He opened up his cellphone, to phone in someone to come pick him up. It read:  
  
_Could you offer your assistance via car?_  
  
His cellphone beeped and soon enough, Duke found that the man he texted sped down the road, nearly crashing into a fire hydrant. The man frowned in disapproval as Raven rolled down a car window and said, trying to look awesome, “Get in.”  
  
The fact that the other passenger, a certain man with white hair and red eyes that were wide, was rather clinging onto part of a seat like he had seen a ghost and was glaring at Raven in the next moment like Duke had been ruined the moment.  
  
When they all got there, Duke didn't waste his breath as a certain other man was busying himself giving the brown-haired male the lecture of his life. He wiped his brow and was thankful that he had braved through nearly losing his life for the sake of a relatively peaceful job. What he didn't expect was to find Yuri in the same store that day, seeming to look for something, and for a different set of reasons this turn, Duke froze.  
   
Yuri turned around, wondering if he felt someone watching him, or rather a certain store clerk there, and found that there was no one of the sort. He felt a bit of disappoint, but shrugged, before picking up another book to read.  
  
…  
  
Duke found himself before some sort of unique looking house...apartment-thing. It seemed to be a brick house all the way through – there was no wooden roof either, and it was probably made with the idea of very study in mind. It wasn't ridiculously huge or anything, and the bricks were mostly a red assortment with a few darker colors here or there. Not to mention the windows were rather fine looking and there was a simple door at front. It seemed to be just a efficient, simple home all in all with no need to look fancy and big compared to its neighbors.  
  
There also happened to be a yard in the back with a few growing flowers and whatever else besides of course the normal parking lot. It's not like he was going to try to get the whole every degrees of the home though and decided that it was best to move along.  
  
His red-gloved hand hung above the door, before he hesitated, not knowing whether he shoulder knock or not.  
  
He hadn't known whether it was a _formal_ move-in party, or just a _casual_ one, so Duke had simply decided to put on all red. A simple, but nice long-sleeved red shirt, and red dress pants to go along with his red shiny shoes. The gloves were there because of the frigid temperatures.  
  
The man then found that the door opened, and he had nothing to say as a man asked him for his envelope, and Duke handed it to him before heading in to see that there were not too many people here, but it wasn't like it was just a small group either. However, it looks like Yuri was absent, which made him feel a bit awkward and out of place, even if the other people here seemed rather surprisingly candid and friendly.  
  
“Oh hey, you're that store clerk from that bookstore, aren't you?”  
  
Duke turned his attention towards that familiar voice, belonging to a certain blond-haired blue-eyed male. The white-haired male said, “...Yes.”  
  
The blond smiled and said, “I'm Flynn Scifo, nice to meet you.”  
  
He held out his hand and Duke stared at it, only to see the other look a bit confused. Then, the albino took it carefully, watching the man's light demeanor returned. Then, he took away his hand, and asked, “Where is he?”  
  
Flynn replied, “Oh he's talking to his boss on his cell. But, he should be joining us soon. Also, I hope he didn't pressure you to come here, or you didn't feel like that. Although he's not the type to typically pressure people into doing things unless he thinks he has to, he can go a bit far at times.”  
  
Duke blinked and said simply, “He did not. I came of my own volition.”  
  
This made Flynn give an easy smile at those words. “Good.”  
  
The white-haired male's gaze lingered longer on the other man's expression, wondering why he was acting the way he did. Was it for his own reasons? Or because he was just the kind of person who wanted to make sure everything was ok?  
  
Duke heard a voice cut in soon enough, belonging to a certain raven-haired man. “Hey, Duke, so you came, huh? Good to have you!”  
  
He turned his attention on Yuri, who was wearing a carefree outfit of some sort-- a black shirt that was opened quite a bit more than most would have their own and white pants along with closed sandals. He also had a strange brace-let around his left wrist. He passed a smile at Duke, and the male felt a strange warmth wash over him that caused the edges of his lips to almost completely successfully stay past the brief twitch upwards.  
  
Flynn noticed and shared a secret smile of his own. “How about I leave you two alone? I need to call Estelle and see how she's doing.”  
  
Yuri said casually, “Alright, check up on your lovebird. No problem with me.”  
  
Duke watched curiously as the blond's face turned red. “YURI! Watch IT!”  
  
Then, Flynn glanced around nervously as if Estelle would have heard and seen what happened before scampering off.  
  
Yuri then asked, “So, Duke Pantarei, right? It's nice to meet you out of work. It's probably pretty stuffy during in a place like that all day long...”  
  
Duke then said frankly, “We have A/C.”  
  
The black-haired man laughed and said, “I mean, just staying within a small space all day long.”  
  
“...”  
  
Duke then looked around and said, “You have... a nice house.”  
  
Yuri grinned and said, “Thanks! Oh yeah and I noticed you've dressed pretty nicely. Red really suits you. Maybe it has something to do with your eyes.”  
  
Duke didn't say anything, but he felt himself beginning to feel embarrassed easily, and quickly walked off before saying anything, leaving Yuri blinking. “Huh. Did I say something wrong?”  
  
Later that evening, Yuri couldn't find Duke anywhere, but he curiously found a small white duck trying to somehow lift itself onto a sink, long after everyone had left. The black-haired man laughed and asked, “How did you get into here?”  
  
The white duck quacked in alarm as Yuri picked it up. “You're so small that I'm not sure if I should put you outside or anything. Actually, I'm not even sure how to take care of ducks. I'm mostly used to taking care of Repede and when Flynn and I used to live together, that little orange cat that used to just shit everywhere.”  
  
Yuri began to run some warm water and heard the door bell ring. He figured it should be fine, so he went to get it, and the duck waited until Yuri went to the door.  
  
The raven-haired male opened it to reveal a certain crazy guy, who said, “Yuri, I've arrived. I'VE FINALLY FOUND YOU--”  
  
Yuri simply and calmly shut the door, locking it, before calling the cops, saying, “Yeah, it's him again. Yeah, I know. I don't know how he got out either. Just make sure to throw him into solitary confinement next time. It'll make it easier on everyone. Thanks.”  
  
Yuri hung up and said, “Not. Flynn better make sure these guys start doing a better job soon.”  
  
Then he went to the bathroom to see that not only the running water had stopped, but that the white duck was missing. Yuri scratched the back of his head, saying, “Well that's weird.”  
  
Later on Duke found himself at his home, knowing that it was such a close one. At this point, he was beginning to realize why he felt this way... around Yuri so much. He sighed softly, and faceplanted into a pillow.  
  
When Duke found himself at work the next day, he simply found that everything was back to normal and for a month he didn't see Yuri at all. He figured it was for the best and he had probably ruined even the chance of friendship because he figured out he was exactly the same outside of work too. Not to mention probably how rude that seemed at a general compliment. However, his feelings of course were working making him feel miserable and low.  
  
He was able to easily put on a facade of some sort and the usual emotionless quiet self he took to being, but he really was frustrated with himself. One day when he was at work, he found himself trying to read a book, but he was still upset at over his own ineptitude, so he didn't make it past the first word in reality.  
  
“Hey, what's eatin' ya?”  
  
Duke blinked and looked up at the voice to see it was Raven speaking to him and he replied, “... Nothing.”  
  
Raven scoffed and replied, “It's been so slow that I've glanced over here and saw ya stuck on the same page for hours. It's not like ya.”  
  
“...”  
  
“Have ya contacted Yuri ever since that party?”  
  
“...”  
  
“... So, no, then.”  
  
“.......”  
  
“Duke, man, c'mon. Everyone can tell ya like the guy. What's goin' on?”  
  
Duke squinted and asked, “How can anyone 'tell'?”  
  
Raven shrugged and replied, “I dunno, when he comes in ya practically steamroll over anyone else before they can get to him, or ya jus' quietly say 'I can take of him', pressin' even when yer told that  it's not an issue. Yer hardly are aggressive about anythin' at all, but when it comes to him, ya start to take action. Ya even went out to a' social gathering and everyone here knows ya hate those.”  
  
Duke lightly nudged Raven. “Leave _me_ be.”  
  
Then he got up and walked off quickly as his face burned red, as Raven sighed.  
  
Soon, Duke found himself out and about, when his shift had ended. He then unwillingly found himself at Yuri's door and pressed the door bell ringer this time instead of knocking. It opened to a black-haired man in a black bathrobe with his hair up in a towel. He said, “Hey, Duke. Look, I'm sorry about--”  
  
“--It was not your fault. I simply... it was such a long time someone had ever said something like that to me.”  
  
While it was true, Duke knew he wasn't being completely truthful and it put a bad taste in his mouth. Yuri looked like he relaxed and said, “Do you want to come in? I mean I can quickly get myself dressed up so you don't have to look at me dripping like a leaking faucet here.”  
  
Duke gave a semblance of a smile, and a small laugh before he could stop himself, making the other male stare a bit in wonder before he smiled himself too, feeling like he witnessed something rare. Then, he stepped in, and took the couch as Yuri went ahead  
  
A few minutes later, the man then emerged from the bathroom wearing a white short sleeved shirt and black baggy pants. He sat beside Duke, who shifted awkwardly, and then moved but made sure that there was a respectable distance between them. He heard Yuri ask, “How long have you been living in this town, anyway?”  
  
Duke replied, “... Almost all of my life. Before that it was Zaphias.  
  
And... you... before you moved here?”  
  
Yuri hummed to himself before he replied, “I lived there for a while too. Not the greatest place to be, although I made the most of it, but now I'm here, and it's not so bad.”  
  
Duke nodded his head, and listened to Yuri's attempts to engage him in conversation while he went ahead and attempted his best to follow up or awkwardly try to be social. Along the way, he found that the man seemed to be getting tired or something, until he suddenly slumped forward and fell against Duke. The white-haired man looked surprised and said Yuri's name, before shifting him slightly.  
  
He carefully brushed a few errant black strands of hair aside the man's head, before resting the palm of his hand against Yuri's forehead. He found that he had a fever, and his lips curled down. He could only wonder if the man had been paying closer attention to his health.  
  
In the end, Duke made sure to locate Yuri's room, noticing that a dog licked at him a bit when he did, and he pet the dog. Then, he made sure to watch Yuri for so many hours, after making sure to properly take his temperature.  
  
102 meaning that it was fairly high, and that someone should certainly watch over him. When those hours had passed into the next day, Duke was still up, and found that the man finally came closer back to a regular temperature. Of course, Yuri didn't expect that the other man had been waiting on him or anything, and soon the raven-haired male stared at the albino in amazement, before Duke said softly, “I could not leave you as you were. But, now you seem to have returned to full health.”  
  
The white-haired male wiped at his eyes due to how sleepy he was, and got to his feet, wobbling a bit because he didn't usually stay past his own bedtime. He heard Yuri ask, “Why don't you just stay here for a bit until you get a good amount of rest?”  
  
Duke froze at the suggestion, and felt his feelings rushing ahead of him at the thought of staying in Yuri's own home. His face began to turn red and he quickly left the room, leaving behind a confused Yuri, and as he looked down the hall, only to see that there was a small white duck quacking sadly in the middle of the hallway. This caused the man to blink a few times before saying, “I feel like I must be having some kind of hallucination here. There's no way Duke could've moved that fast... or I guess maybe he could've.”  
  
The raven-haired man moved to pick up the duck with a sigh, saying, “Don't know where you keep coming from, but maybe I can run some water for you this time and you won't run off, right, little guy?”  
  
Yuri moves to put the duck onto the bathroom sink as the small animal gazes curiously at him, and the home phone ringing only drives his attention away. Duke quickly took the moment to push at the red button next to the faucet and went under the water. The next moment he found himself sprawled over the bathroom floor with his hair wet, before getting up, and peering out to see Yuri talking on the phone. He watched the man closely.  
  
The raven-haired man didn't seem to notice anything around himself as he was yelling, saying, “You can't just fire some people because you screwed up! You need to take responsibility for what they did, and those people you're casually naming off? They work a hell of a lot harder than you ever did. Look, if you don't admit to it, I won't hesitate to tell Whitehorse. Then you'll be in for it even more than you would be if you just owned up to it.”  
  
There was the sound of someone yelling on the other side of the line before Yuri replied, “If you're trying to intimidate me, it's not going to work. I'll be nice and give you to the end of next week, the day after that party. See you.”  
  
Yuri sighed and turned to see Duke standing there, watching him curiously. In that moment, he began to come over to him before he reached out and put a hand on the white-haired man's shoulder, saying, “Hey, thanks for your help. I hadn't even noticed it myself and if you weren't there I could have gotten into trouble, haha.”  
  
The albino looked at the hand, before he simply nodded. “It's... no problem.”  
  
Then the black-haired male stepped back and handed Duke something that looked like a slip of paper. He rubbed the back of his head and said, “Look... I know you're quiet and I heard you're not a fan of social gatherings, but Flynn's going to be late, and there are a lot of people I'm not going to want to see there. So I thought you might want to come, if only to hang around the VIP section a little.”  
  
Duke took the piece of paper and looked at the date. He then said, “...It is something that I will make time for. It sounds quite important, after all.”  
  
Then, Yuri's eyes widened when the other gave him a small, warm smile. It was like seeing the sun rise over the mountains.  
  
Duke found that Yuri escorted him back home since he was so tired, and when the other had departed, the white-haired male could not help but smile to himself, holding the small piece of paper close. He felt like something amazing was happening to him right now, even if he knew he had to force himself to be around other people... it was something he wanted. And he got a chance to see Yuri do something important.  
  
There is the wonder, if he is going to see that, would Yuri like to see him do something important someday as well?  
  
The very next day, Duke had returned to his work, and he was approached by Raven, who swung an arm around him, saying, “Ya look like ya won the lottery! How 'bout you spill to lil' ol' Raven what happened, huh?”  
  
Judith came along to remove the arm from a surprised albino and said, “Careful, I hear he can break people's arms in two, and he looked like he was shocked enough to do that.”  
  
The darker skinned of the two pouted and said, “Hey he wouldn't do that to his pal, right, Duke?”  
  
“...”  
  
Duke then looked to the side, before saying, “... Perhaps.”  
  
Raven put a fake-hurt expression and said, “H-How could ya...?!”  
  
It actually amused Duke a little.  
  
Alexei came out from behind the counter and said, beginning to lecture, “Stop distracting everyone, you fool. If a customer came in seeing this display, they might walk out...”  
  
After that happened, Duke found that it was generally quiet, and even moreso when the other three were on break. Nothing really happened all that much so he didn't mind even if there was many on shift and most of them taking their break at the same time. More quiet time for him, and at the thought, a customer walked in with black short hair.  
  
He looked pretty much like everyone else, only to complain about everything because he couldn't find a single book. Duke mostly tuned out the worthless complaints and when it seemed the customer was off to look for something. What he didn't expect was when he asked to turn around, was to be punched in the face, and fall to the floor. After being called various degrees of worthless, the man left, and Duke rose to his feet, feeling numb as well as too shocked to register what had happened.  
  
The punch likely left a bruise, and he could only raise a hand to his smarting cheek, before the bells singled again and he looked over to see Yuri come on in. He saw the confused expression on his face as he asked, “Hey, what's going on? What happened to your face?”  
  
Duke wondered how bad it looked for him to say that. He said simply, “A customer was dissatisfied with his station in life and simply vented their...frustration.”  
  
Yuri's eyes flashed and he asked, “He didn't give a name or anything, did he?”  
  
Duke shook his head and later his co-workers returned from break. He informed them of what happened and Yuri still stuck around, respectfully out of distance until the conversation was done. Then, the raven-haired man spoke up, asking, “Hey, is it alright for me to show Duke something? If he hasn't taken his break already, this might be a good time for him to.”  
  
Raven, who looked deep in thought, said, “Alexei says its fine.”  
  
Alexei glared at Raven, who grinned sheepishly at him in return, before he sighed, and said, “Yes, it's fine.”  
  
As they came outside, Yuri directed him to a quaint restaurant and asked, “What did he say?”  
  
Duke said nothing for quite awhile, like he had the whole entire time on the walk there, and he couldn't get himself to even so much as reply. He knew now that Yuri would give up on him and find him a lost cause, because he had been allowing someone's words to affect him so deep. He knew what that man said wasn't true... or maybe somewhere he thought it was true.  
  
...That he was worthless. Really, what had he been doing with his life up to now?  
  
He hesitated, not knowing what to say exactly, and considered everything that's happened. He's been fine with how he's lived his life, and for a moment, he realizes he was shaken from such an experience. Even though he knows that the words were not true, his feelings were... hurt. But he was afraid how Yuri would react, and maybe he wanted just a little bit of sympathy or understanding from him, instead of, 'Oh, well. That's common, isn't it?'  
  
Things were different... with him. Someone could have said he was in romance with him, but was that really all?  
  
Duke decided to stare at the food he ordered, and finally said, “His words were...insignificant, however he mentioned how worthless I was for working where he could easily complain to my detriment in order to make me lose my position. That I was obviously the last choice for … because I looked like this. Among other things.”  
  
Yuri hmm'd and said, “So he was jealous of you, then.”  
  
The albino blinked and asked, “What...makes you say that?”  
  
Then, the other male came over and sat next to him instead of across from him, replying, “He focused on your work and your appearance. And besides, it's also because he noticed you're happy where you are-- that it looked like you have few worries because of who you are.”  
  
Duke nodded, a little stunned, before he noticed that now Yuri's hand rested upon his and he was grinning at him. “It's his loss, either way, right?”  
  
The albino blushed as he found a warmth come from his heart and looked at his food again. But he responded quietly, “...Yes.”  
  
His fingers then went to intertwine with Yuri's as his blush deepened and suddenly he wasn't really hungry anymore, as he became lost in the moment of happiness.  
  
Later on, things occurred without incident, and Duke had been looking forward to the big event. He had even decided to dress in something like a pink sweater and a light blue dressrobe of some sort with red boots. He drove there carefully to the party that non-profit organization Yuri was part of was holding, and hurried up the stairs instead of taking the elevator. He handed his ticket to a man in black shades and he nodded, but before he completed going into the hallway, he was pulled back hard enough by a part of his sweater to the point it ripped.  
  
Duke glared harshly at the security who had done it to try to scare the man, only to nearly piss his pants at the narrowed red eyes that seemed to be like daggers. Then the white-haired man moved into the hallway with no interruptions this time, and found that Yuri was in the middle of some speech, that ended soon enough with claps. Duke gave his own quiet clapping all the same, and noticed that the man seemed to look elated when he noticed the other man giving his approval.  
  
Soon, they met, and then Yuri homed in on the large tear in his sweater, asking, narrowing his eyes, “What the hell happened? Did someone attack you?”  
  
Duke informed him and soon Yuri said, “Well, I know who's getting fired by the end of the night.”  
  
The albino simply nodded and asked, “What made you take this job?”  
  
The raven-haired male said, “Helping others who were like me and Flynn makes me know I'm helping solve issues instead of just hoping for the best. That simple sort of thing.”  
  
When Duke went into silence, Yuri then asked, “What about you? Why did you want to take your job?”  
  
Duke had simply informed the other man that being around books was something he didn't mind and that he had been in the process of writing a story, so it might inspire him. He remembered that Yuri had smiled and said, “Well, if you finished that story of yours, I'd read it.”  
  
“...Truly? You are not just saying that?”  
  
Yuri nudged him with a grin, saying, “Come on, ye of little faith. I'm for real here.”  
  
Duke squinted a bit at the nickname and tried to nudge him playfully back.  
  
…  
  
Duke immediately rose to his feet at what he heard Raven say, asking, “Yuri Lowell is... making a departure?”  
  
Raven blinked and replied, “Yeah, he didn't tell y--?”  
  
The white-haired man said quaintly, “It's appreciated you covered my break.”  
  
Then he rushed out the bookstore, with Raven saying, “Hey...ya didn't even give me a' chance ta even accept it or not.”  
  
Duke made it to Yuri's house in a car in an act that would mimic Raven's driving (okay so he might have been developing bad habits but so what?). Then he parked halfway into the drive-way and in the street, before coming out of the car and knocking quietly on Yuri's door. The man opened it and was surprised to see red eyes glaring up at him and the question, “Why didn't you inform me?”  
  
Yuri sighed and said, “I was going to pass by and tell you, but...I hadn't gotten a chance to. Something happened and it'd just be easier for myself to be relocated elsewhere. It's pretty far out, though, so I'm not sure if we'd see each other any time soon.”  
  
Duke hesitated, before he said, “Then I will go with you.”  
  
When the man shook his head, and said, “I'm not sure if that's a good idea. Do you really want to go ahead and do something like that?”  
  
The albino looked a cross between confused and upset, before he wondered, what was that kind of reaction? They had known each for months now, right? He always figured he could come back, and maybe he could see what other places looked like. He then said, “It's what I want.”  
  
Yuri sighed and rubbed the back of his head. “I'm not the type that people can easily live with. Just go ahead and ask Flynn. He's only coming along to 'keep me out of trouble' he says but it's because of his job too. What about your job?”  
  
Duke said simply, “I will get another one. Is that not enough?”  
  
Then, it was at that moment he realized what he was saying. The foolish words that were coming out of his mouth right now... surely wouldn't that make someone easy to despise? The other was trying to say no, and that was something he should respect. He was just humiliating himself, talking to Yuri so selfishly, and stubborn for such awful reasons. Quickly he turned on his feet, feeling a rush of embarrassment coursing through him, and in that moment, Yuri saw instead of Duke, a small, white duck.  
  
Yuri blinked in surprise, before picking up the duck and asking, “It was you all along, huh? Man, I hope I didn't make this happen. That would suck-- but hold on let me get some water for you.”  
  
Duke didn't even make a sound as Yuri put him under the sink, and the man sighed. He then began to run water, and soon instead of a duck, it was a beautiful white-haired man once more. The man quickly walked past him, without saying a single word, other than thanking him quietly, and hurried out the door, going for his car so he can drive off. He knew he'd embarrassed himself enough today and he wouldn't see the man again.  
  
He drove off quickly and made way for his house instead, and got out of the car. To his surprise, he saw that Yuri had drove after him and the man came out of the car, saying, “Hey, don't you have work today? Why're you going straight home?”  
  
Duke started to walk down the side-walk, towards the forest, and tried to ignore Yuri, who started to walk after him. “Duke, come on, say something.”  
  
The man said simply, “It doesn't matter anymore. I simply sent a text saying I didn't feel well.”  
  
When Yuri started to follow Duke in a quicker walk, he found the other looked over and tried to walk faster.  
  
Before they both knew it, Yuri was trying to chase Duke down, who he'd lost quick enough in the greenery and sighed loudly. He shouted, “Duke! Come on already! I just want us to talk so there's no misunderstanding!”  
  
Duke, on the other hand, had managed to fall into a lake by losing his footing, and found that in that moment he had somehow slipped unconscious at an inopportune time.  
  
_When he had, he found himself dreaming, of seeing someone with white short hair and red eyes venture into a forest, before stopping by a lake. He was looking at a small, white duck by itself, and asked, “Are you alone?”_  
  
_The duck said, “Yes. My parents and everyone else left me behind.”_  
  
_The man knelt in front of him and said, “Poor creature. Do you have a wish, then? I will grant it.”_  
  
_The duck replied, “I wish... to find what it truly means to be happy.”_  
  
Duke gasped as he was brought forth from the water by strong arms and saw that Yuri was looking at him with powerful, turbulent emotions in his eyes. He noticed that the man was trembling a bit, like he was, but that it probably wasn't because he was cold. He heard Yuri ask, “Duke, did you just try to...?”  
  
The man shook his head. “I fell in by accident and before I knew it, I fell unconscious.”  
  
He heard Yuri gave a shuddering sigh of relief, before he smiled a bit. “Good. Let's get you home.”  
  
Duke wanted to protest at the help, but he found himself feeling weak, and thought shortly he shouldn't have skipped breakfast in order to avoid being late. He allowed Yuri to help him a bit but managed to pull away half-way there, and he heard the other man say, “Duke, about earlier...”  
  
The albino stopped walking and said frankly, “I did not mean to cause you so much trouble. You can disregard my actions as you see fit.”  
  
Then Duke resumed his steps, and heard Yuri sigh. When they return to his house, Yuri invited himself inside and the other man didn't even so much as protest. Duke was able to dry off and change into a robe, before he approached Yuri and the dark-haired man was about to say something, only to find that the other had quickly embraced him. Yuri began to pat Duke's head a bit and said, “I caused you trouble too. I wasn't handling the whole thing very well, either.”  
  
Duke looked up at him and he tried to force a smile for the first time in his life. He said, “No... I was being arrogant. You were the first, true friend I have made in so long that I...I did not wish to see you go.”  
  
Yuri made a face and said, “You don't have to try to force yourself to look like that, you know. It looks like you're about to cry.”  
  
The white-haired man blushed and soon Yuri was holding a small duck in his hands. He laughed a bit and then he leaned to place a small kiss on the duck's head as he said, “I think I'm going to have a hard time leaving you alone if you're going to be like this. It might be for the best if you do come along. Meet more people, expand your horizons. Smack some sense into me.”  
  
What Yuri didn't expect was the duck to turn back into a human from that simple action and Duke's face to be unreadable as he held onto Yuri tighter. Something else occurred to him in that moment, and Yuri said, “Oh...oh. I'm alright with that too.”  
  
Duke looked at him with a small smile. “Then... good. It is agreed.”  
  
…  
  
Duke looked at himself in the white dress wear he adorned and he paused, wondering whether he should get this one or the white tuxedo. It was honestly really hard for him to tell which one he'd like better, but, maybe he would have to ask someone like Judith or Yuri to help make the decision. Raven was out of the question, considering the whole situation was between him as well as another (besides the fact Raven getting married he was just the type of person who would be an unfortunate choice for fashion decisions). Duke then informed the worker at the store in Halure he would like those two items to be on hold.  
  
The white-haired man came out of the shop, before taking a look around the new town he was in, and that some of the others had somehow wound up moving to. He tried not to be suspicious at them when he found that they all had, and wondered why they would, but he just simply remembered a strange feeling of mirth and happiness to see them all joke about missing a piece of a puzzle. Besides the fact that Estelle's finances could enjoy it, as well.  
  
The town was relatively modern, a little more towards the woodsy area and had a lot more flora than Duke knew what he wanted to do with. But it added more to his inspiration for his story... which was mainly about a woman, on a journey to save the world from entropy. At the thought, he almost caught himself in a laugh about everything that's happened, and he blinked, as he said to himself, “How...strange.”  
  
He heard someone ask from behind him, “How is it strange? That you're happy? Or that you're with me?”  
  
Duke saw Yuri standing behind him with his hands on his hips and that cock-sure expression of his which he has come to enjoy. He walked closer to him and he said coolly, “Who could say? I could keep it to myself.”  
  
Yuri scoffed, before pulling an arm around the man, who was wearing a red long jacket and red pants. He said, “Then I guess I'm just going to have to find out what it is exactly.”


End file.
